Emerge
by xChymera
Summary: Kutchiki Byakuya finds out his childhood friend and first love is alive. She's listed as traitor and he is assigned to carry out her assassination. The cheerful little girl he once knew had now become a dangerous killing machine.


** Chapter 1 - Wanted**

The darkness of the large room only adds to the boredom of every captain meeting. The young man stood straight, not daring to move, as the only person he'd ever had to obey went out of his way to assemble the captains for yet another conference. This time, each was called in by the butterfly. It better be important. What could possibly be the problem after the Soul Society had sealed Aizen and suppressed the arrancar? The Soul Society prevails. There is no danger.

- _'I have assembled you here,' finally began the old captain, 'in order to settle any remaining unfinished business the Soul Society may have.'_

Dead silence. What unfinished business? Yamamoto was always good at keeping everyone under suspense.

- _'There are many individuals who until now were believed to be dead, they are in fact hiding in the World of the Living.' he continued._

Yet another pause. The old man stepped down from the platform and threw a scroll on the tatami. The scroll unrolled parallel to the two lines of captains, its end almost reaching the door. Yamamoto proceeded to read out the names. No, he never even glanced at the scroll. He started reciting every name by heart; he must have kept close watch of each one of those individuals. All twenty-four.

- _' …. Number 4, Ooki Ryuusuke …'_

The list seemed to be going on forever. Although there are only twenty-four men on it, the name of each was followed by a description and the captain assigned to it. Although Kuchiki was sixth among the captain, Yamamoto wasn't even close to assigning him a criminal.

- _' …. Number 6, Ibu Kai, age 457. Last seen in Italy …'_

The list kept going. Yamamoto's voice was fading out of Kuchiki head. He caught himself spacing out, while the list was already at number 15.

- _' … 15, Kan Rena, age 200.'_

Kan …. Rena. A face of a young teenage girl with long dark red hair and yellow eyes flashed through his head. Her red yukata with a cherry blossom design made her highlighted her cheerful smile. No … she can't possibly be alive. Kuchiki turned his attention towards Yamamoto.

- _ '__She was the daughter of one of the famous Kan family in Soul Society. Kan Rena had betrayed her own family at age 102 and went missing. Witnesses said she got her neck slashed open and was recorded dead. Marked as traitor. Last seen in Karakura.'_

Bullshit. She definitely died, but her body went missing. She's no traitor … Kuchiki knew that best.

_- 'She will be assigned to 6thdivision, Kuchiki Byakuya.'_

Kuchiki was about to snap. He held out until the end of the assembly, and headed home.

Alive, how can someone survive such a thing? Kutchiki walked into his manor looking pale, and having completely ignored the greetings, concerns and questions of his maids went to the Kutchiki Family's remembrance hall.

The hall was long, gloomy, and just breathing in that air, hinted with oil aroma, sent chills down his spine. The room had no furniture at all, but many small shrines were mounted along the walls. He walked straight past most shrines without even pausing to show his respects and only stopped at his wife's. Above the small shrine made of a dark wood, it read Kuchiki Hisana in jade-green letters. Byakuya became distracted by her photo for a moment; she was a beautiful woman, looked a lot like Rukia, but much more feminine and peaceful. Then Kuchiki remembered what he was here for. He bowed to his wife's shrine, then bent over to open a small slot in the wall under it. He took out a small coloured photograph of that same girl with long wavy red hair and yellow eyes. The photo dated a hundred years back; it acquired a yellowish tint, the edges wore out. The familiar yet distant face brought back memories that stabbed into his heart. He turned the photo to the back, where it read in his own writing

**"IT IS ALL MY FAULT."**


End file.
